


The Path of your Life

by AdmantCrow



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Alternate Universe - Royalty, Assassins, Characters from Danganronpa in different roles, F/F, Falling In Love, Fantasy, Fluffy Moments, Graphic Violence, Intimacy, Isolation, Low Fantasy, Mental Health Issues, Mental Instability, Mystery, Politics, Teenager being beaten, Time Skips, tags to be added as story progresses, timeline jumping
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-05
Updated: 2018-07-19
Packaged: 2019-05-02 12:55:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,617
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14545212
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AdmantCrow/pseuds/AdmantCrow
Summary: Maki has always been an assassin, as long as she remembered. At the age of fourteen, a chance encounter with the kingdom's Princess, Kaede, gives her the chance of a whole new life. Years later, the two reunite at Kaede's castle, where a greater conspiracy begins to unravel and the truth of 'who you are' is questioned to it's very core.





	1. Change's Hand

**Author's Note:**

> As a warning, this chapter does features scenes of a teenager being beaten by an adult.

Even if Maki didn’t know exactly how this girl would change the course of her future, there was still something about Kaede that changed something inside her.   
  
For nearly everyone attending the royal visit in that small, squalid shantytown of the frontier, the interaction with the nation’s rulers had been brief. A wave from the queen, perhaps a brief handshake with the king, nothing more. As they walked the main ‘street’ (Anyone was hard pressed to even call it that), between the royals walked their fourteen year old daughter, Kaede, a jewel of the kingdom. Much like her mother, she gave a cheery, innocent wave to those present, smiling her bubbly smile without fail. That was, at least, until her eyes fell on the odd one out in the gathering. A girl, dressed in the attire of a boy much her same age, her dark hair cropped to her ears, her downcast expression focused on the ground in front of her despite the festivities ongoing. Compared to the extravagant joy all around her, to Kaede, she seemed so sad. As her family strode past, the girl’s eyes, full of fire and sadness and a thousand other feelings, rose up so slightly to meet with Kaede’s for the briefest moment. It was a look that didn’t make sense to Kaede; for as long as she remembered, the people in her life had always been positive, even if the face of adversity. Nothing like the eyes of this sad girl. It was so alien to her, that Kaede let go of her mother’s hand, to the shocked reactions of her parents, to stride over to the girl and grasp her shoulder.   
  
_“Are you okay?”_

 

Maki didn’t understand. In fact, she couldn’t at all process the fact that the princess of the kingdom was _here_ , standing in front of her in that white ornate dress, saying those foreign words to her, who looked more akin to a homeless boy. Kaede repeated the questions to her, but it was like listening from a thousand kilometres away. How was she supposed to respond to this situation? Komodo had simply told her, stand at her post, _remove_ any possible dangers to the royal family, and let them pass by. He’d never mentioned anything about _interacting_ with them. But in all honesty, that was the furthest thing from Maki’s mind. Those damned words, mixed with that confounding expression on Kaede’s face; it was an expression she could barely recognise, one she had not witnessed in eight, no, ten years. 

_“You seem so sad.”_ Compassion, it dawned on Maki’s mind. It was compassion, and worry that was coming from Princess Kaede. Something Maki hadn’t dealt with in years. Not since before… She’d been trained to deal with swords, and knives, and bows. Beasts and rogues. And for what she hadn’t been trained to face… she’d always been instructed to run away. And so, from the worries of Princess Kaede…

 

 _Maki ran away_.

 

 _“She won’t follow._ ” Maki assured herself. From her post she’d darted into the alley of the shanty town directly behind her, taking a hard left and another right before coming to a stop at a crossroads between four shacks. She was probably disobeying Komodo’s orders, but when it came down to it, the masked assassin would probably punish Maki for ‘speaking’ to Princess Kaede regardless. She lent against the wall, breathing lightly despite her speedy sprint. She held out her right hand, frowning at it’s mild shaking. It wasn’t like her - the things she had done outstripped knights and rangers alike. So why had those words and that expression affected her so.   
  
And almost without realising, another hand gripped her outstretched own.   
  
“My gods, you can run!” Princess Kaede half-laughed, despite Maki’s mix of surprise, horror and panic. “If you hadn’t left those footprints in the mud, I don’t think I ever would have found you!” Maki still said nothing - she was completely aghast that someone as sheltered and presumably athletically inept as the princess could catch up to her, especially considering her rather unsuitable footwear. Which whilst thinking this, Maki’s eye dropped to Princess Kaede’s feet, her eyes widening as she realised she was _barefoot_ , her high-heeled shoes gripped in her free hand. The fact that the princesses feet and hem of her regal dress were splattered with mud didn’t seem to worry her in the slightest. 

_“Komodo is absolutely going to reprimand me for this.”_ Maki thought to herself, wondering if it would be better to make another run for it, maybe to the rooftops where the princess ( _assumedly_ ) couldn’t follow her, but there was something about that grip on her hand that she couldn’t just shake off - or, more accurately, she couldn’t _bring herself_ to shake off. 

“Why did you run away?” The princess asked her, that damnable expression on her face again. “I simply asked why you were so-” 

“That’s not my mission.” Maki said shortly, surprising herself, breaking eye contact with Kaede. The princess cocked her head, not understanding. Maki grit her teeth, wishing she could just get her inevitable punishment now. “I was just meant to watch, and guard. I’m not meant to talk to you. I’m not meant to…” In that moment, her awareness returned and her hard shell returned.   
  
“S-Someone as young as you, guarding my family?” Kaede frowned, trying to think. “I’ve never seen any guards being younger than twenty.” She nodded, thoughtfully with her eyes closed as she tried to put the pieces together. “The only people in our defence employed so young, at least according to one of my friends, are assassins, but you wouldn’t be…?” The blond princess laughed, as if that was the silliest thing in the world, but the look on Maki’s face did not change. In fact, she simply hid her face even more, as if to hide from the realisation that Kaede had just made. The princesses’ face sunk as it hit her, that the fourteen year old girl in front of her was a killer of the state. “You can’t be. It’s just not right…” Maki turned away from the princess, clenching her fists. 

“You need to go back, _now._ ” The last word was drenched in bitterness and frustration, though it wasn’t clear if it was for herself or the princess. 

“No, I asked if you were okay, and you aren’t!” The princess snapped back. 

“I’m not hurt at all, so go back to the parade, your _parents_ are probably having a fit."

“I do not care about that! I want to help you!” 

“With what? There isn’t anything to help!” Maki bit her lip. The princess didn’t understand. This was her world. There was nothing wrong with her; simply, her sense of _right_ was so torn that such awful circumstances could be seen by her has fine. 

“Let me get you away from this life!” Kaede shouted, finally making Maki whip around to retort, her mouth frozen in a half prepared response.   
  
Frozen, because as she turned, almost as if she saw it in slow-motion, three men stood a beast’s length away from the princess, their leader’s arms outstretched to grab at the distracted Kaede’s shoulders. 

“Perfect.” The man murmured, Kaede finally realising the danger she was in, slowly turning. “We didn’t even need to lay the ambush. The doll ran off all on her own-” He didn’t get a chance to say anymore. As if on autopilot, a dagger slipped from Maki’s sleeve, launching it from her grip to bury it in the eye of the man reaching for Kaede. Her aim wasn’t perfect; Maki grunted as the edge of the blade scratched Kaede’s cheek, blood beginning to slowly drip from the wound, as the leader of the criminals fell to the ground and stopped moving. The two other men briefly looked at each other, then back at Maki, their focus on the princess briefly broken. Storming forward, one of the men knocked the princess to the side, knocking her into a wall, the girl stumbling in the mud. One of the men aimed a blow at Maki’s skull, but she deftly took a step to the side, avoiding the strike all together. As she sidestepped, she planted a well-aimed strike to his windpipe, half-crushing it as she did so. The man gasped, collapsing to his knees, grabbing at his throat. The second man closed in, brandishing a short blade. Taking a step forward to get in position, Maki first kicked upwards, knocking out the first man. Withdrawing a second dagger from her other sleeve, she avoided the first slash, and then the second, blocking the third with just the dagger. The bandit seemed utterly astonished at the fourteen year old girl’s strength, but step by step, he was pushed back, but a swift knee to the groin broke his attention, and Maki slashed his throat, ending his life.   
  
Breathing heavily, Maki retrieved her other dagger from the leader’s eye socket before turning to the princess sitting against the wall, mud covering her white dress. Her eyes were wide with fear, blood still dripping slightly from the cut Maki had accidentally given her from the blade. Maki knelt down, looking into the eyes of the shocked princess. 

“Hold still.” Maki murmured, reaching into her pocket to grab at the bandages she always kept with her. “You don’t want your cheek to get infected.” Kaede nodded slightly, her eyes fixed on the assassin. Slowly, Maki checked the wound, satisfied there wasn’t any mud in it, before applying a cover for it. 

“It’s not right.” The princess murmured, her eyes still locked on Maki. “It’s just wrong.” 

“What is, princess?” 

“You shouldn’t have to do this to live.” By god's, she was crying. Tears dripped down Kaede’s face, such a sad look etched on her face. “You should be able to live happy.” Maki looked down at the mud of the ground, gritting her teeth again. Again and again, the princess never ceased to confuse her.   
  
She doesn’t understand. How could she _possibly_ understand? There isn’t another life for her. This _is_ her life.   
  
“If I wasn’t like this, what would’ve happened now?” Maki said quietly, standing up. 

“W-What?” 

“If I’d never become an assassin, and you were alone here with those thugs, what would have you done!?” Maki stared at the princess, her bright red eyes lighting up for the first time since Kaede had spoken to her. 

“It… that is, I mean-” Kaede stammered, trying to combat Maki’s verbal assault. 

“You’d be dead.” She replied coldly, her hands balling into fists. “Maybe you wouldn’t have encountered them here, but those men mentioned they had planned an ambush. Maybe one of the others in my unit would’ve handled it, but there was every chance you’d just be dead.” Maki turned around again to return to her post. “That’s why this is my life, and that’s why you can’t deny it as a fact.”

“...Who would care about that, if you didn’t have to live such an existence?” Maki, again, stopped dead in her tracks.

“...What?” 

“What does my life matter, playing piano in a castle and being groomed for royalty?” The princess frowned at the assassin in front of her. “I’m not so naive to believe we shouldn’t have assassins… but people as young as us shouldn’t be those.” Maki stood motionless for far too long, again trying to process what the princess was telling her. What she was saying was a counter to _everything_ Maki’s life was. Everything Komodo had molded her into for the last decade. 

“What’s wrong with you!?” Maki growled, taking a step towards Kaede. The princess, in actuality, seemed kind of slow to Maki, as she simply looked confused again. “You act like you’d be okay with dying, for someone you took pity on _once_ . What’s wrong with you!?” Maki asked again. Really, when it came down to it, Maki was the one who was being slow. She just couldn’t understand the emotions Kaede was conveying. How could she? 

_“Haven’t you ever wondered what life would be like if you weren’t an assassin? If you were what your life truly was meant to be?”_ The question was like a knife through Maki’s mind. She had thought it, so many times, all those years ago when it first started. She’d asked everyone she could, those in her unit, but all of those had given her the same answer. _Of course you were meant to be an assassin. That is your role in life._ And so, slowly, the child Maki had been had believed it, and that was it. She was meant to be an assassin, and she had never asked again.

  
And here was Princess Kaede of the nation, telling her it could’ve been different. 

“...This _is_ my life.” Maki murmured, shaking her head. 

“You weren’t born like this, were you?” Kaede replied, taking a step forward. “Someone else made you like this.” Maki avoided her gaze, half-trying to block her out. Memories flowed back, unabated. The orchard. Her family. Her life. Then it was gone. Komodo. The one who had given her her purpose. 

“No, he said this was my role in the world.” 

“Then he was wrong!” Kaede took another step towards her, Maki looking up in shock at her statement, blocking out the memories that had broken through the surface. “People aren’t born to do this, and neither were you!” Slowly, the princess held her hand out, offering it to the gutter rat of an assassin. Maki started, her red eyes wide was uncertainty. “M-Maybe…” Kaede murmured. “Maybe I could talk to someone, get you removed from the ranks of the assassins, and…” She suddenly stopped, staring at Maki’s face.   
Her mouth was half open, looking as if she was immediately going to rebuke her offer. But a tiny part of her, the part so disturbed and confused by all of what Kaede had directed at her, thought differently, pushing her in a new direction. And for the first time in over ten years, Maki the Assassin let it guide her. 

“Princess…” Maki’s voice was shaky. “Can you help me-” 

 _“I think that’s enough, dears.”_ There it was. That voice like sandpaper, always with such a condescending tone. The hand on her shoulder, the shocked look of Kaede staring behind her, there was no doubt it was _him._ “The King and Queen are not going to be pleased with that white dress being so stained with mud, oh no.” Kaede took a step back from the man, fear clouding her vision. 

“W-Who are you?” She stammered.   
Maki turned to face the voice, half scowling, half horrified as she did so. Dressed in dark leather and a matching hood, none of Komodo skin could be seen. Least of all his face, hidden beneath an ornate wooden ram mask. Only his eyes, those maddening blue eyes, like they could discharge lightning if he chose to do so. 

“Not very right of you to lead our princess into dangerous territory, _Maki._ ” That damned voice. “I saw your excellent work with those rebels, top notch performance.” A blade of fear ran through Maki as the implication of what he said ran her through. 

“How long were you watching us, Master?” Maki murmured, the shakiness of her voice gone, simply replaced with hesitance and built-in fear. 

“ _The whole time.”_ Komodo purred, those bright eyes narrowing behind their mask. And just like that, Maki’s self returned, the suddenly vulnerable, suddenly hopeful girl of a moment ago gone as if she was never there. “Maki, guards are coming to escort the princess back to the procession. I would say it is most advisable we leave, _now._ ” There was no resistance, no complaints. Komodo simply turned on his heel and walked towards a shaded alleyway - and Maki followed suite.

  
“Wait!” Kaede took a few steps forward, calling out to Maki. “What about what I said? I could help you!” Maki stopped for a second, Komodo hovering at the alleyway to wait for his apprentice.

“I told you, Princess.” Maki murmured, staring blankly back at the blond girl. “This is my life, he is my master. I live to carry out my purpose.” Kaede shook her head, taking a few more steps.

“But you don’t need to, I can save you from this!” She pleaded, urging Maki to not leave. 

“But I must. This is who I am. This is who I will always be.” Again, Maki continued to walk towards Komodo, Kaede weakly following, trying to think of anything to help her. 

“At least…” Kaede murmured, finally stopping to lean against a shack. “What’s the name of the girl who saved me? Who am I going to look for in the future?” Maki stopped, looking back with the same neutral look. “What name am I going to look to save one day!?” Kaede half yelled, almost pleading as the sound of guards came close. Near the opposite alleyway, Komodo made a huffing noise. It was subtle, so subtle that Komodo was too distracted to see it, but Kaede did - Maki’s face changed. That hidden crestfallen ess still remained, but there was that tiny spark of what was before - a longing for _something._

“My name is Maki. Just Maki, Princess.” And with that, Maki and Komodo vanished into the darkness, the guards finally securing the safety of the princess, haunted by the look she had seen in Maki’s eyes. Even as the guards took her arms and began to lead her back towards where her parents were waiting, Kaede stared at the dark alleyway, feeling her eyes grow moist. 

“ _...How could I have saved her?”_ She thought to herself, despairingly.

* * *

 They ran all day, and all night, to return to the capitol. Far ahead of the royal procession, hidden from all eyes. It was just second nature, really, to Maki. She’d go on a mission. She’d complete the mission. She’d run back to the HQ. Again, and again. Komodo had developed her skills well enough that she can run for hours and hours without rest. She tried not to think about anything that had happened prior to this, but Kaede’s words forever echoed in her mind. For the first time in years, Maki’s listless mind drew back to a decade earlier - her scattered memories of the life she had before. Her parents. The orchard. Life. But now things were different.  
Her fear, and acceptance, of what was coming simply drover her further. Finally, they entered below the main entrance to the city, going through endless tunnel after endless tunnel, until finally the master and apprentice reached the hidden, underground stone barracks of the kingdom’s assassins. A half dozen men and women sat in the central meeting room, idly sitting around whilst waiting for their missions. Their eyes rose, pupils highlighted by the torchlight as Komodo and Maki returned, several of them smirking at the teenager, shaking their heads.   
  
“...” Komodo stopped in the center of the room finally turning to Maki. The master assassin had said nothing the entire trip back to the capitol - not that that was a unusual occurrence. But this was different - those eyes were _somehow_ even colder than usual, his posture rigid, his arms crossed. Maki’s heartbeat grew faster - she legitimately had no idea what Komodo was going to say, or do, in response to what had happened with the princess. And it was that which scared her more than anything else. Uncrossing his arms, Maki automatically flinched backwards, but ceased her movement as Komodo roughly pat her cropped raven hair. 

“Before anything else, I must give praise where it is due.” Those blue eyes softened, ever so slightly - if Komodo actually had a face, Maki imagined he was smiling. “You protected the princess wonderfully. Your dispatchment of those rogues was nothing short of divine, my dear.” Maki, still slightly off put by Komodo’s good mood despite what had happened. Bowing slightly, Maki nodded. 

“Thank you, Mast-” Her reply was cut off as a fist struck her on her left cheek, _hard._ It just took everything Maki had not to fall on her back from the force of Komodo’s blow. “ _That was a lot harder than usual_ ”. Maki gasped as blinding pain spread across her face, spitting out some blood. 

“And I must dole out punishment when it is due.” Komodo’s eyes were once again cold, as if they had never seen joy. His rough voice snaked into her ears, sounding like sand falling in a cave.“Your efforts with the terrorists were remarkable, but that is all I can say. You abandoned your post, despite my orders to remain there until the royalty had left the town. You _spoke_ to the princess, despite my command to simply watch and dispatch threats, not interact with anyone _at all_ . And worst of all -” Maki was a little more ready this time, but she still held back a yell as Komodo threw another blow against her right cheek. “You put the princess, the future of the kingdom in severe damage. Regardless of your skills-” Another punch to her ribs. “-Regardless of her own actions-” A kick to her legs, bring Maki to her knees. She held back more screams, the pain spreading across her whole self. “-Due to your efforts, the princess was injured, dirtied, and seperated from her family.” He threw another punch at her face, Maki screwing her eyes closed. The fist stopped centimetres from her face, instead the collar of her shirt and holding her in the air, close to his mask. “Look at me, Maki.” She couldn’t resist it - the danger emanating from his voice giving rise to imaginations of punishment if she didn’t. The ornate ram mask he wore, so close, disturbed her greatly. 

“I didn’t ask her to follow me.” Maki gasped, “She did it.” 

“You know I don’t care about that, Maki.” Komodo purred. “I simply am doling out the just punishment. What I care about is what you talked to her about.” Maki’s heart practically stopped. She’d expected the pain, and the punishment. But what she had _feared_ , what she had been so scared of was this.   
“Who are you?” Komodo asked Maki, his eye narrowing. 

“M-Maki.” The teenager replied, hanging limply in his grasp. “Apprentice of the assassins of the kingdom.” Komodo nodded, agreeing with her answer. 

“What is your role?” 

“To protect the kingdom, no matter the cost.” Again, Komodo nodded, enthused with her answers. Almost off-handedly, Komodo asked one more question. 

“ _Who were you?”_ Maki was about to say her normal answer to the question, what she always answered, but her mind wandered. The pain of Komodo’s blows, and then strain of running for so long had run her bare, along with her encounter with the princess. The memories that had flowed through her as Kaede questioned her role in life. The orchard. Her family. Life. Komodo.

“The orchard…” She murmured, her eyes going out of focus. Maki saw, for the briefest of moments, Komodo’s blue eyes go wide, rage flowing through, before the world collapsed on itself. 

Komodo buried his fist in Maki’s slim stomach, dropping her to the ground after he did so. She couldn’t hold it back anymore - Maki screamed as the powerful master assassin’s rage embedded itself in her. The pain was unreal, a feeling she hadn’t felt since she was first trained to be an assassin. She tried to sit up, but the pain rose up again, and she was back on her hands.The other members of the assassin order, watching Maki and Komodo’s encounter with some interest, even now looked repulsed by their master’s treatment of his pupil. 

“It’s a shame, it really is.” Komodo murmured, shaking his head. Kneeling down to look closely at Maki, Komodo whispered. “That was the prelude to your purpose. That life before, it doesn’t matter. You had no life, no purpose, nothing. You were _no one_ then, and it was me who gave you purpose. It was me who rescued you from nothingness.” His normally calm voice was growing into a snarl. “You should thank me for making the most of your divine gift.” 

“W-What if…” Maki coughed, pain ripping through as she sat in a heap, looking up at her enraged superior. The pain was making her delirious, but insane thoughts that Princess Kaede had planted in her mind,  continued to bloom and despite the injuries they had caused her… she was being drawn further into them. “What if you had never done what you did, all those years ago? What if you had never killed them?” Complete silence emanated through the great stone headquarters, everyone in the room fixated on Komodo. The masked man was motionless, Maki staring right back at him, a mix of fear and defiance etched on her features. 

“ _Such a shame_ .” Komodo whispered, enough so only Maki could hear. “ _Maybe this time around, you’ll stick.”_ Maki narrowed her eyes, confused as to what Komodo was saying, before clapping his hands, yelling. “CORINTH!” Eyes darted to the nearby door, where a tall, browned haired women dressed in a loose, bloodstained black tunic, emerged. 

“Yes, Komodo?” Corinth’s voice was quiet, delicate - everything she wasn’t. 

“Maki has fallen out of the guidelines we hold so dear in our order. She lasted years longer than the last session, but it seems with need to take a more… cerebral look at things. If I hadn’t arrived, the princess may have removed it all there and then.” Maki’s mind began to work once more, trying to make sense of what Komodo was saying. A singular thought raised up, a sudden realization of why Corinth was here coming to life. The chief medical officer of the assassin’s order, her position was something of a paradox. Just about any situation involving serious injury during a assassination contract usually ended in the death of the officer involved. So what was the use of a medical officer who didn’t really heal people? Well… the last person to visit her quarters… well, not all of him had come back out two months later. No one except Corinth and Komodo knew what happened behind those doors, what made the twisted results that claimed the lives of those Komodo saw as expendable.   
  
_“Oh no._ ” Maki thought to herself, feeling her body begin to shake. She didn’t even know what she was really fearing. She just had to get away. 

“Such a shame, such a shame.” Corinth didn’t looked disappointed at all - in fact, she looked almost delighted, smiling as Maki recoiled from her. “I’ve improved tenfold since the last time, so I think I can do what you want.” 

_“No._ ” Maki began to drag herself away from the two of them, Corinth and Komodo looking on with some measure of amusement.   
“She will be spending some time in the infirmary, I wager. I trust she will be in your capable hands?” Komodo idly asked Corinth. 

“Of course, of course.” Corinth nodded, grinning at Maki who stared back horrified. 

“Good, good.” Komodo turned back, and knelt close to Maki. “It’s a shame, Maki. I thought it would stick this time, I really did.” His eyes really did looked sad this time. “We could’ve done so much, so much with your skills and my training. It’s a shame.” He placed his hand on her shoulder, shaking his head. “You did better than last time, I have to say. So, next time…” His eyes eyes narrowed once more, and a evil intent seized Maki from just that look. Leaning in, he whispered to the teenage assassin, and then withdrew. Maki just sat there, dumbfounded at his words, before she shakingly got to her feet. Komodo glanced at Corinth, nodding towards his apprentice. “She’s in your hands now, do your-” He cut himself off, glancing to his left, sighing as he watched Maki sprint towards the exit, horror in her eyes. 

“I guess some things never change, right, Komodo?” The masked master shrugged.   
  
_“I must warn them.”_ Maki thought to herself. The pain in her body was unreal, but yet she still soldiered on. The others in the chamber just idly watched, sadness and disgust on their features. _“I’m the only one who could stop this.”_ If she was somehow able to leave, get to the castle on the surface, maybe, just maybe- 

“If only you could remember, then you’d see how pointless it is, every time.” Maki turned to her right, feeling fear run down her spine as Komodo was already upon her. She barely dodged a left hook, and then a right hook, trying to back up towards the door. 

“I’m not going back there.” Maki whispered, trying to keep the distance between them. “Not again.” Komodo sighed, shaking his head. 

“If only you had a choice. This is what I decide.” And then he was gone. Just into thin air. If Maki hadn’t been half blind from pain, she would’ve looked up. But her mind was foggy, and she didn’t even consider the fact that Komodo had appeared above her, falling feet first towards her head. As his boots struck her head, she didn’t even feel the pain; she simply crumpled into a heap, all senses going to a minimum. Maki felt like she was dying - everything was going dark, only the very edge of awareness holding her together. 

“...damage to her whole body… replace everything?” Corinth’s voice hovered on the edge of her vision, as she fought retain consciousness. _Replace?_

“This time… the princess… encounter… useful… future.” Komodo replied. _What about Kaede? What were they going to do?_ The two assassins looked down at Maki, Corinth smirking. 

“...sorry…” Komodo’s voice echoed to her as the darkness began to consume her. 

_“I’ll stop him.”_ Maki thought, all sensations ceasing across her body. _“I’ll stop him. I’ll kill him. I’ll kill him. I’ll kill him…”_ As Maki lost awareness of the world around her, her final thoughts were of her encounter with the princess Kaede, wondering how it had all come to this. And then, Maki thought no more. 

* * *

 

 _“Why?” Kaede asked, sliding back in the mud, her white dress stained with dirt. The rain poured down, a flash of lightning illuminating her attacker. “After all this, why?” The dark haired assassin bared down on Kaede, dressed in little more than a red nightgown, taking another step, her bare feet sinking into the mud._ _  
_ _“...” The woman didn’t reply, brandishing the knife she held in her hand. “...”_

 _“You don’t have to do this. You don’t have to listen to them!” Kaede yelled again, clumsily retreating on her hands and knees._ _  
_

_“...I am his blade, and he is my holder.” Was all she said, the lightning lighting her up again. “And you… are my prey.”_

 

* * *

 

 

“Kaede!” 

Kaede sat bolt upright, sweat covering her body, the image of the girl from her nightmare still burning in her mind. The sun was shining on her bed, far too bright for the tired princess. Standing next to her grand windows was her private servant and close friend, Kirumi. Dressed in her normal long black dress, her friend looked very disappointed in her - likely due to the late hour of Kaede’s awakening. 

“I-I’m sorry~” Kaede mumbled as she got out of her huge bed, Kirumi shaking her head despite her smile. 

“I’m am not angry with you, Princess. I simply believe your time would be better spent rising an hour or two earlier.” Kaede loudly complained, making Kirumi huff, but still giggle a little bit at her princesses complaints. After all, she’d put up with her for years - this wasn’t new behaviour. Kaede stretched in her white nightgown, yawning loudly as she stared out the window. Moving to the mirror, she gave her appearance a couple of glances. She ran her fingers through her blond hair, flowing just past her shoulders. 

“Something wrong, Princess?” Kirumi asked, standing next to her opposite the mirror. 

“No, no.” Kaede mumbled, yawning again. “I believe my chest has finally stopped growing.” Kirumi gave her friend and master a weird look, shaking her head as she laughed. 

“I feel you mention this to me at least once a week. Though, I have to say, I don’t pay too much attention to your chest.” Kirumu moved away to begin cleaning up her friend’s bed. Kaede just shrugged and stepped behind he changing screen, throwing her nightgown over the top as she dressed into her normal suitable outfit, humming cheerfully as she did so.   
“You seemed to have been sweating a lot when you slept.” Kirumi not, frowning at Kaede’s bed. “Did you have a nightmare, Princess?” The images of her nightmare faded back into her mind, but Kaede lied to Kirumi regardless. It was just a silly dream - already, she was forgetting details of it. 

“Not at all, perhaps I was just too warm? The new blankets kept me quite toasty.” Kirumi made a ‘hmm’ sound, as if she wasn’t quite convinced. “A-Anyway, anything special happening today?” Kirumi nodded from by the bed, replying as if she had forgotten about the topic of her dream. 

“Yes, the new staff are arriving today. New servants, new cooks and… I believe a new master of the guard is coming as well.”   
  
_New staff, huh?_ It wasn’t anything new, really. Once a year, new staff were brought into castle to replace retiring members of the castle’s workers. Nothing really ever changed - they were very conservative with hiring, going with the best in their fields. Over the years, Kaede had made friends with several of the staff, like Kirumi when she had first become a servant of the castle. 

“Ah, that reminds me, Miss Himiko wished to let me know she wished to eat breakfast with you. The hall is still open for another hour, so if you hurry, she should be still down there.” 

“Good idea. Do you want to com-” Kaede nodded, stepping out from the changing screen, now dressed in her long white dress. As if it was waiting to make a point, her stomach chose that moment to growl loudly, making Kirumi giggle to herself. 

“Go, enjoy your food with Miss Himiko. I’ll eat in my quarters later, don’t starve on my account, Princess.” Kaede hopped on the spot a little bit, feeling bad about going without her friend, but finally relenting. 

“Fiiiiine.” Kaede waddled off towards the door of her room, looking back at Kirumu. “At the very least, we’ll have supper together! You’re my friend first, Kirumi, not my maid.” Kirumi simply smiled, waving her off. Kaede gave her a cheery wave, and headed out the door.   
  
As Kaede moved through the castle, she sighed, glad to finally be rid of the guards that followed her always. Ever since the incident during the royal parade four years, when she had run off on her own, her mother had been set on having guards follow her at all times. As much as she did understand her mother’s worries, the constant guards had been a pain on her natural exploratory nature, crushing any attempts at exploring beyond the castle. Heck, their constant presence had crushed any chance of privacy outside her own room. Now that she was finally eighteen, her mother had agreed to let her roam the castle on her own without constant companionship, though beyond the castle was a different matter altogether. 

“...And here we have the royal quarters.” Kaede stopped as a small group of people came around the corner, led by a familiar steward.  Her close friend, Shuichi, one of the stewards of the castle, seemed to be taking a group of the new arrivals on a tour of the castle. “Generally this is off limits for most staff, except stewards, servants, and guards.” Shuichi caught a glance at Kaede, his eyes opened wide as he turned on his heel and bowed to her. “Princess!” One by one, the other ten or so individuals turned and realised who was standing there, bowing in respect. Kaede just shook her head and waving them up.

“No, no, you don’t need to bow, it’s not needed.” Shucihi reluctantly raised his head, frowning. 

“It’s proper protocol, however.” He mumbled, making Kaede giggle at him. 

“You care too much about that junk.” He seemed somewhat uneased by her informal manner of speech in front of the new arrivals.

“Um, Princess, there are the higher ranked new arrivals that will be joining us this year at the castle.” Shuichi nervously raised a hand, introducing them as a group. One by one, they all nodded in respect. Kaede didn’t really look at them - she was used to such a group every year. 

“I’m heading down for my breakfast, so I’ll catch you around, Shuichi!” Her steward friend again nervously nodded, before trying to get her attention again before she left.

“Oh, Kaede, I mean, um, Princess!” Shucihi called. “Mr. Kaito wished to speak with you, around noon? He said he had something to speak to you about.” A devilish grin spread over Kaede’s face, nodding at his message.   
_Looks like Kaito found another way out._

“Thank you, Shuichi, for letting me know!” With that, Shuichi motioned for the group to follow him down the hallway to the armoury. As Kaede waited for them to pass, the last in line caught her eye.   
  
A woman with long, waist length dark hair, dressed in hard leather, a bow and quiver at her back. Something about her set alarm bells off in Kaede’s mind, and before she could think otherwise, the princess felt herself calling out.

“Excuse me!” The woman, no older than herself, turned back, to look at the princess. _My god._ Kaede thought, staring at her. She was different, that sure. The longer hair, the larger muscles, the more experienced posture. But… _Those eyes. I’d never forget them._

“Yes, Princess?” That all but confirmed. It was maybe a little deeper then she remembered, but it was her. It had been four years, but there was no way Kaede could ever forget _that_ encounter.

“It’s Maki, isn’t it?” She murmured, as if saying it loudly would make it untrue. “Maki, from the town four years ago.” How often had she thought of that day? How often had she wondered what had happened of Maki? And after all those years, almost giving up on finding her, she’d found her way here, on her own?  
Slowly, the woman standing across from her narrowed her eyes, crossing her arms as if she was thinking hard.   
“ _Maybe I was wrong._ ” Kaede thought. It had been four years, after all…

“I’d almost forgotten that day.” The woman swept her dark hair over her shoulder, looking rather… hesitant? Afraid? “It’s been so long, and so much has happened…” The woman sighed and bowed, as if it was a pain, making Kaede make a noise of surprise.

“Wait, is it really-”  
The woman stood back up properly, smiling a tiny bit, pulling Kaede back to that moment four years ago.

“It is wonderful to see you again, Princess Kaede. My name is Maki. From now on, I shall be serving as the captain of the castle guard. I hope we can get along.” Maki gave her a curt nod, and turned on her heel to follow Shuichi and the tour group, not even giving Kaede a chance to reply or ask any questions about the four years. But the way she talked away, confidant and powerful, was just like the teenager she’d seen all those years ago. Maki had finally turned up again, even before Kaede had planned to begin her search for her. But a bigger question remained:  
  
Why was she here, now of all times? And why was she so curt, and hesitant to speak to her? Kaede was so confused, but now that it seemed Maki was staying in the castle, perhaps Kaede could unwind the riddle of how she had become the captain of the guards - considering she’d been an assassin all those years ago.  
_“Maybe…”_ Kaede thought, heading towards the dining hall. “ _Maybe she was able to free herself from her fate._ ” And that thought alone was enough to satisfy Kaede for now, a smile rising across her face, glad that after all these years, she finally had the chance to truly create a bond between herself and that lost girl from all those years ago.

 _"Just wait, Maki!_ " Kaede thought to herself.  _"I'll make up for all those years we lost for not saving you then!"_


	2. Freedom in Reach

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kaede tries to go on another adventure for the day.

“Kaede.”

* * *

The princess played with a bolt that lay on the table, listlessly moving it back and forth, her face betraying how spaced-out the young adult was. “Kaede!” She’d been like this ever since her encounter with the new Captain of the Guard this morning, Kaede had been like this, not taking in a lick of information that anyone was giving her. Himiko, one of the royal Entertainers, had eaten breakfast with her, rambling about one of the other staff members she was friends - none of which Kaede could now remembered. And now, she was in the East Tower of the castle, the headquarters of the two inventive heads of the castle’s ‘scientific’ division; the exuberant yet hopeless Kaito, the Royal Astronomer, and chief Inventor, Miu. And still not listening to a work they were saying.  
  
“I go out of my way to help ya, and this is how you behave.” Kaito threw his hands up in the air and turned back to his desk on his half of the room.

“Hang on a sec, Star Nut.” Miu turned from her desk on the other side of the room, dressed in a mismatch of a tunic and various strapped-on parts of leather armour. Daintily making her way over to the seemingly brain-dead Princess, Miu lent and gently whispered “Princess…” before practically screaming “OPEN UP YA BLOODY EARS, BRAT!”, sending Kaede tumbling out of the wooden chair onto the cold stone floor, Miu dancing back to her desk.

“What the heck was that for?” Kaede frowned, dusting off her white dress as she frowned at the two other occupants of the room. Kaito looked somewhere between horrified and fighting the urge to burst out laughing, whilst Miu looked pretty happy with herself.

“Just needed to wake you up, Princess!” Miu laughed, making her roomate shake his head with annoyance.

“Well, you could’ve just given me a tap, rather then blow out my hearing!” Kaede pouted, crossing her hands at Miu, who’s haughty nature seemed to crumble. 

“What’s with you this morning?” Kaito grumbled, turning back from his desk, vaguely reading some star chart as he glanced up at the princess. 

“It’s nothing really, I guess.” Kaede mumbled, pulling a lock of hair behind her ear, averting her eyes. 

“Bullshit, you’ve spaced out more than I did when I inhaled some of that gas I made!” Miu laughed in the background, making Kaito shake his head again. 

“Next time, try that stuff in a different room. I lost three days after I whiffed that stuff.” He glanced back at Kaede. “Anyway, Kaede, what the heck’s going on? This ain’t you, Princess.” Kaede still felt it was stupid to talk about, but relented under her two friends questions. Shuffling on the spot a little bit, Kaede started to speak. 

“So, you remember years ago when I ran off during the tour of the country? And I met that girl?” For the next ten minutes, Kaede told her friends what had happened here, and how Maki had come back into her life this morning.   
  
“So that’s what ya bothered by?” Miu laughed, jumping out of her chair again, her messy hair flying everywhere. “A girl? Is our Princess in love?” Kaede just glared at Miu, which was enough to make the wild inventor back off. 

“I get it’s a weird coincidence, that girl turning up here after these years, but it’s just that - a coincidence. So why it’s bothering you so much?” Despite seeing it as little more than just chance, Kaito seemed to be taking her weird mood seriously - one of the reasons Kaede spent so much of her free time so much in the Tower with these two. 

“It’s not that she’s here that’s bothering me. It’s everything else. I mean, she said she was an assassin! She killed people right in front of me.” Kaede stretched out in her chair, looking up at the high ceiling. “And there was that man, the one who took her away.” She frowned. There was just something wrong about this whole situation, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. And it always came back to the man with the ram mask. 

“You said it seemed like those two were part of cult that protects this bloody place, right?” Miu frowned. “But the crown has never employed assassins that young, officially or unofficially. One way or another, we’d have info on some kind of secret assassin order, led by some tart in a mask, and there just isn’t anything.” Kaito nodded in agreement. Between the two of them, one way or another (sometimes through less then legitimate channels) that got a _lot_ of info from around the castle. Not everything, but enough to make it seem like Miu’s claims were true.

“Maybe she really did get away from that awful life.” Kaede murmured, smiling a little bit. “Maybe I’m overthinking all of this, and she’s finally reached a better place.” Kaito grinned and got out of his chair, giving Kaede a friendly slap on the back. 

“That’s a better way to think about all this! She’s finally out of crappy life!” It still felt weird, but Kaede finally relented, smiling at her eccentric friend. “Anyway!” Kaito tapped the piece of paper in his hand. “Now we can finally talk about what I got you here for.” Glancing at the piece of paper, Kaede’s eyes lit up as she remembered what it was.   
  
“You found another way out!?” Kaede beamed, taking the paper out of his hand. Kaede’s sense of exploration was heavily constrained by her role in the castle - and her escapade on the tour four years ago. In fact, she hadn’t left the castle area ever since they had returned from that tour - at least, not officially. Ever since becoming friends with Kaito and Miu years ago, the crazy scholars had understood her exploratory nature and had agreed to find the myriad of ways out of the castle to the castle town - because as a castle, it had a metric ton of secret passages and little-known exits. As the years had passed, Kaede would likely get one, or two if she was lucky, uses of the passages before someone of authority would find out, and cut of its use.

“Well, hopefully twelfth times the charm!” Kaito laughed, leaning over to look at the paper as well. 

“Wait, isn’t this the cellar exit?” Kaede frowned, looking closer. “That was the third thing we tried, and it got cut off immediately!” Kaito shook his head, poking the paper firmly. 

“Nah, nah, it’s not the same one. Turns out, there’s a _second_ entrance on the other side of the cellar, hidden behind the ale barrels!” Kaede perked back up, turning the paper around to try and orient herself. 

“Oh. Oh! I see it!” Kaede’s smile turned into a grin as a new conduit to freedom opened up to herself. “You sure it’s decent? It won’t be dangerous like the West Tower exit?” Kaito shook his head, calming her worry. 

“Don’t worry about that, Kaede. Miu and I had a look through in case there was anything interesting down there-” Kaito explained. 

“Which there bloody wasn’t!” Miu shouted across the room. 

“...Which there wasn’t.” Kaito sighed, trying to continue. “It’s just a cave-based passage that’ll take you into the west side of the castle town.” Kaito grinned, giving her another pat on the back. “As long as you move back the couple of barrels, I think you’ll get more than a couple uses out of this one!” Even as he said this, Kaede felt herself getting giddy - it had been nearly a year since they’d found any kind of a decent exit, and the idea of this one being so helpful to her sent a thrill down her spine. 

“Oh, there’s one thing you gotta remember going down this cave passage.” Miu waddled over, looking over the paper again. “Remember to go down the bloody left side when you get to a split in the path. Put that in your tiny brain, _the left_ .” For once, Miu seemed serious, and Kaito was actually _agreeing_ with her for once, the biggest surprise of the day. 

“What’s wrong with the right path?” Kaede frowned, folding the paper and shoving it down the front of her dress. 

“That’s the thing.” Kaito frowned, crossing his arms. “We don’t know. The left side is about a two hundred metre walk until you get out, but the right side…” 

“From what we could tell, the blasted path goes for further then five kilometres, looping around and around, always going down.” Miu shuddered. “And that’s as far as my damn tools could work out - I dunno, but the place gave me the creeps.” It felt weird to Kaede as well, but what did it matter? She had a way out! 

“Well, it’s early in the day, so I might as well try it out now!” Kaede grinned, almost too excited to stay still. It had been so long since she’d been truly outside the castle - nothing was going to stop her now! 

“Right, right, that’s only fair.” Kaito grinned, waving her off. “Just be careful, and hide the path when you go through.” Kaede nodded, smiling as she moved towards the door. Miu stamped her foot to get the attention of the somewhat air-headed princess. 

“The left side! Remember that! I don’t want to go cave-diving for your sorry behind!” Kaede just laughed her off, but nodded all the same. And with a cheery goodbye, the princess was gone, leaving the two scholars behind, a notable air of worry between the two they both quite weren’t sure about.   
  


* * *

  
  
Going from the high tower all the way down to the cellar took a while - and it wasn’t made easier by the light degree of stealth Kaede had to employ. Kaede’s attempts to leave the castle were well known to pretty much all the mainstays of the castle, considering the near-dozen times she’d achieved it. So whenever she was acting weird, the staff just _knew_ she was up to something. So, as she made her way to the subterranean level of the castle, she had to act casual, as if she was just wandering around as she always did, and was expected to do. At one point, she passed Shuichi, grinning at him as she did, making him nod in response. He was among the few who was supportive of her actions. As always, Shuichi would attempt to misdirect people to think Kaede was just somewhere in the castle - not gallivanting around in the castle-town. She treasured Shuichi as a friend, and one of these days had to repay him for his help in all her misadventures.   
  
After about an hour of trying to look casual, Kaede found herself going down the cellar stairs, walking quietly in case someone was already down there. Peeking down the gap between the ceiling and the stairs, she saw no one in the darkness, progressing on her way. Just before she was going to light a candle to find her way to the ale barrels, a grinding noise echoed through the room, twice, before Kaede became very aware of someone standing in the room across from her. After a long moment of silence, Kaede spoke out. 

“W-Who’s that?” More silence, before in the darkness, a match was struck, illuminating the form of the brand new captain of the castle, Maki, her bright eyes lighting up in the semi-darkness, making Kaede feel somewhat disturbed.   
  
“...Princess Kaede. What’s someone of your statue doing in the castle cellars.” Her cool, casual tone further unsettled Kaede, but she was so close! She couldn’t retreat now. But what was a new captain doing in the cellars? Was she waiting for her? Did Kaede’s attempts at stealth completely give her away? 

“Y’know, it gets pretty boring around the castle at times, so I was just wandering around, looking for something to do-” Kaede tried to justify her actions, but was quickly cut off. 

“Something to do. In the cellar.” Maki murmured, making Kaede’s reasoning sound downright idiotic. “If you require entertainment, I can perhaps contact your entertainer friend HImiko, or perhaps one of the others entertainers?” Kaede frowned. This was going to be harder then she thought. It didn’t matter that it was Maki, that whole situation was one for another day. All she wanted was through the secret passage, and she had to get through Maki. 

“I’m sure I can find something to do on my own, though I thank you for the idea, though I think I’ll look around here for a bit, just for something new.” Kaede tried to casually lean again the staircase, but Maki just stared at her, unmoving. This standoff lasted for a full minute before Maki sighed, looking more then a little annoyed. 

“It’s my first day, and I already have to deal with this... “ She took a few steps towards Kaede, who recoiled out of instinct. “Princess, those in charge told me exactly what your deal is.” Kaede felt her heart drop to her feet. Maki knew exactly why she was here, didn’t she? Honestly, it was probably her parents who spoke to Maki about Kaede’s escapades to the outside world. 

“I’m not sure what you’re talking about…?” Even as Kaede said it she was aware of how bad a liar she was. Maki stopped walking towards her and sighed, shaking some dirt of her leather armour.   
  
“Ok, Princess, I’m going to be frank with you.” Kaede gulped - this was Maki, but she was a very different girl to the one she had met all those years ago. “You’re going to try and get out of the castle, and I have had very specific instructions to _not_ let you out of the castle.” Yep, it was as bad as she thought. “But.” Kaede’s depressed thoughts ground to halt as Maki sighed again, crossing her arms. “I’m going to look the other way, today at least. I’ve got a thousand things to memorise today, and learn the layout of this blasted character, so.” Maki strode past Kaede, handing her the candle she was holding in her hand. Kaede was just so confused. Why was the new Captain of the Guard just letting her do the one thing her parents forbade her to do? 

“So… you aren’t going to stop me?” Kaede realised she probably shouldn’t admit to what she was trying to do. “Uh, if I was going to do something I wasn’t meant to?” Maki glanced back at her, shrugging. For the first time, Kaede noticed how tired she looked. 

“Do whatever you want, today, Princess. Just don’t assume you’ll be able to walk all over me. I just have too much to do today.” And then she was gone, leaving the princess alone in the cellar, and with her thoughts. Her elation with being able to leave the castle for the day had made her almost forget about her concerns about Maki’s return, and now this strange encounter brought those thoughts to the forefront. Aside from how she looked, and the confidence in her abilities, it was almost like it was a different person altogether   
  
But if she was going to sit in this cellar and ponder that, she’d never get out of the castle. Thoughts of Maki could await another day - for now, Kaede had to get out of the castle and find her way to the castle. On early trips to the town, she’d been betrayed by her clothing - every piece of clothing she had was something only a princess would wear, and it was only after befriending a tailor by the name of Rantaro who visited the castle she was able to fashion a disguise so she could freely wander the town. So, after leaving the passage, she’d sneak over to Rantaro’s home to borrow her ‘ normal clothes’, a long brown dress she honestly preferred to the over-the-top white dress she wore now. Creeping over to the ale barrels, she ran her fingers over them until she found the two that had to be moved, pulling them forward with a grinding noise to reveal the castle’s exit. Peering into the darkness, she used the light of the candle to check if it was the right exit, confirming this fact. This was easily the creepiest method she’d used to escape the bounds of the castle, but fear of the dark cave was easily bested by her adventurous spirit. Stepping through the hidden door, she pulled the barrels back, before a realisation had hit her. The grinding noise of the ale was the same noise she’d heard before Maki had revealed herself in the darkness. Considering how obscure this passage was, this fact just served to baffle Kaede further, but these were thoughts for later - freedom was in her grasp. Closing the door, Kaede wandered into the darkness, grinning from ear to ear.

 

* * *

 

A few hours later, Kaito practically fell out of his chair as the door to he and Miu’s quarters was firmly thrown over, the door banging into the wall. Miu slammed her hands on the table, turning to find who had rudely intrude on their studies. Standing in the doorway was the tall, powerful form of Maki, who looked utterly serious in contrast to the rather over-the-top scholars.

“What the hell do you want, storming into our tower?” Miu stormed towards Maki, looking utterly ticked off. “I don’t come into your quarters, screaming and showing off myself!” Maki stared at Miu, which was enough to stop her in her tracks. 

“Sod off, I’m not here to deal with you.” Miu’s haughty composure crumbled, collapsing on to a nearby chair as Maki turned to stride towards Kaito, who straightened up in his chair, trying to look decent despite his messy brown work clothes. 

“H-How can I help you, M-Miss…?” Kaito mumbled, leading her on to give her name. 

“I’m the new Captain of the castle Guard, Mr. Kaito. Maki.” From across the room, Miu hissed. 

“It’s her! The one Kaede was talking about!” Maki glanced over at Miu, looking confused and interested, before shaking her head and focusing on the issue at hand.

“You’ve been digging through architecture records and historical entries for the past few years, whilst providing no scientific output related to these particular, correct?” Maki’s no-nonsense tone was very different to the people Kaito usually dealt with, and it was seriously messing with him. 

“I s-suppose, but I don’t see how it relates to anything-” 

“I know you’ve been helping the Princess find her way out of the castle for the past few years. Don’t try to deny it, I’ve found evidence already.” Kaito’s blood ran cold, and Miu explicitly swore in the background of the room. Kaito tried to act confident, but his worries that Kaede had been discovered were weighing him down.   
“

So what are you here for, then? You haven’t gone to the staff in charge, so you’ve got a different angle here.” Kaito grumbled, gritting his teeth. “Did you run into Kaede?” Maki nodded, crossing her arms. 

“I let her go to the castle town, through the cellar passage. She ran right into me. I didn’t stop her, or tell anyone. Then I worked out how she was getting this information.” This just served to further confuse the two of them. “But, if I’m going to keep it that way, and keep the information of you two’s collusion with the princess to myself, I’m going to need something from you.” Miu swore again, but Kaito knew he didn’t have any choice but agree to whatever she was going to say. 

“...What is it?” Kaito grumbled.   
  
“You will give me information on every hidden entrance and exit into the castle, both ones that are currently useable and that are cut off.” Kaito nodded, feeling that was obvious. “In addition, you will inform me whenever Kaede heads out into the castle town, since I’m aware she consults you two before each excursion, in case changes have been made to her route.” This worried Kaito far more than her initial demand; but again, he had no choice but to agree. 

“All right, I guess I have to keep you informed.” Maki gave the two of them both one more, hard look, her eyes lingering on Miu for a bit longer - her comments about Kaede being concerned about Maki resonated with her, but that wasn’t her job right now to think about. She nodded to Kaito. 

“Don’t try and go to others about this encounter. It’ll make my job much harder, and I don’t want to have to deal with half the castle knowing about this.” And with as little as a reply from Kaito or another word from herself, Maki turned on her heel and begin to leave the room. 

“What are you trying to do about that daft princess!?” Miu forced out a shout before the new captain could leave the room. Maki stopped, glancing back, which was enough to make Miu recoil. 

“...I might be the overall captain of the guards of this castle, but I have been given the role of protector of the Princess by the King and Queen. This way, I can protect her by knowing where in the hell she vanishes to, and keep an eye on her. And with your cooperation, I can do that.” And then she was out of the room, leaving it’s owners completely bewildered, staring at each other with mixed feelings. Before long, Miu strode over to the table in the middle of the room, rifling through papers as if she was looking for something.   
  
“What are you doing, Miu? We can’t do anything about this situation, and even then, it seems like she does have good intentions to protect the Princess.” Miu looked up at her, concern on her face - something Kaito had seen on his companion’s face in a long time. 

“She said she found Kaede in the cellar, and that Kaede ran right into her. Why would a Captain be in the cellar? Why else but because of that blasted passage?” Kaito narrowed his eyes and sat down opposite Miu, now seriously interested in what she had to say. 

“Why would she have anything to do with that passage? It leads to the town, nothing more, and it feels like there’s a thousand of those things in this place.” Kaito replied. 

“Kaede said Maki was an assassin all those years, but I never found any information that they existed, and whilst that’s true, where would the perfect place to hide an assassin cult is?” She could practically see the gears turning in Kaito’s head, before his eyes opened wide. 

“We never did work out how far that passage went, did we?” Miu shook her head. 

“I’m worried about Kaede, but we’ve got be careful. That dolt Maki might be actually looking out for Kaede, but just in case… let’s do some research, for Kaede.” Kaito nodded, looking out at the sea of papers in their room. 

“Something stinks about this.” Kaito grumbled. “It could take months… but we’ll find it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading, I hope you'll stick around for further chapters!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading the first chapter of this (hopefully) long-running story!
> 
> Next time, Kaede meets up with her friends within the castle, and attempt to form a new bond with the new captain, Maki!


End file.
